Cake depression and VEGAN no-bake brownies!!

Yes, I was this close to sinking into an eternal abyss of cake depression. It seems a year of hardly baking has rendered my hands useless and I had lost nearly all my talent to produce, not elegant, but EDIBLE cakes.

I've had multiple cake disasters over the past few weeks, passing up food that looks hardly appetising and disappoints the taste buds. I had one more shot today at baking something that I normally wouldn't and, if this didn't work, I was throwing in the apron, oven mits and cupcake cases for good.

So thank goodness it worked.

Trawling the internet for 'miracle' foods, I stumbled upon a recipe for 'Vegan No Bake Brownies' which comes from www.fitsugar.com

These delicious morsels include some of my favourite things, including a particular indulgence of mine: dates!

(I've slightly adapted this recipe, due to a lack of applesauce.)

Vegan No-Bake Brownies (Cuts into 20)

1. Peel a medium sized pear and dice

2. Place in a heat-proof bowl in the microwave with 1 tsp water and cook for 1 minute

3. Remove from the microwave, mash with a fork, set aside and leave to cool

4. Blend 2 cups of oats with 1 cup of unsalted cashews, 8 fresh and de-stoned dates, 1/3 cup cocoa powder and 1/4 tsp salt in a food processor. The mixture should be fine and resemble a flour-y consistency

5. Slice a large, ripe banana and add to the food processor

6. Measure out 1/4 cup of the stewed pear mixture and add to the food processor (you will not need the pear again)

7. Blend in the food processor until the mixture becomes a dough-like consistency (it should be moist and stick together slightly)

8. Add 1 tbsp vegetable oil (and more if required until the mixture sticks together)

9. Oil a square metal dish and put the dough inside, pushing the mixture flat with your knuckles or the back of a spoon

10. When it is leveled, push 5 broken walnut halves into the mixture

11. Chill for at least 1 hour in the fridge

TOP TIP: Store in the fridge until you wish to consume